Gentoo Archives: gentoo-user

From: James Tanis <jtanis@×××××××.org>
To: gentoo-user@l.g.o
Subject: Re: [gentoo-user] Sound problem
Date: Mon, 11 Jul 2005 22:34:06
Message-Id: 4134.192.168.0.200.1121120706.squirrel@pycoder.org
In Reply to: Re: [gentoo-user] Sound problem by Christoph Eckert
1 On Mon, July 11, 2005 4:02 pm, Christoph Eckert said:
2 >
3 >> For the kernel, deprecated == likely to be removed soon ==
4 >> obsolete. Now, it is true that only the OSS drivers are
5 >> deprecated, not the OSS emulation provided by ALSA.
6 >
7 > The question is if the ALSA OSS emulation is a good idea.
8 > Because it exists, people are not urged to use ALSA.
9 >
10
11 There is also OSS ALSA emulation.
12
13 >> I have no problem with applications supporting OSS for
14 >> operating systems besides Linux, because as you say, that
15 >> is the standard for those systems. I do have a problem
16 >> with apps that insist on *only* supporting OSS for Linux.
17 >
18 > That's true.
19 >
20 >> What really bugs me is that most of the offending apps are
21 >> commercial applications that don't even have ports for
22 >> Solaris, FreeBSD, etc!! Besides, it isn't like supporting
23 >> multiple sound APIs is really all that hard....
24 >>
25 >> >>Note that, AFAIK, there is no mixing possible with the
26 >> >> OSS API. Your
27 >> >
28 >> >It does support mixing.
29 >> >
30 >>
31 >> According to the dmix HOWTO, you are correct, it should
32 >> work. I guess I just gave up too easily, and I stand
33 >> corrected. Thanks.
34 >
35 > If an application tries to access /dev/dsp, DMIX does - AFAIK
36 > - not work transparently. INstead you have to start the
37 > application using the aoss wrapper, maybe aoss skype or aoss
38 > reaplay. This doesn't work convenient for the user.
39 >
40 > Furthermore, there seems to be a bug so Skype will crash as
41 > soon as it gets invoked via aoss (I don't know if it is a
42 > Skype or an aoss bug).
43 >
44 > So, if want to stay idle for incoming Skype calls, do not
45 > start any other sound application because Skype blocks your
46 > device...
47
48 I am admittedly not to familiar with Linux's implementation of OSS, it
49 could be that it is obselete and buggy. I have only used OSS in other
50 operating systems. In my experience mixing and/or dynamic virtual channels
51 are available with /dev/dsp through kernel/modules no userland
52 applications are needed. This all seems kind of irrelevant though, I
53 believe this guy is using ALSA with OSS emulation :p.
54
55
56
57 --
58 James Tanis
59 jtanis@×××××××.org
60 http://pycoder.org
61 --
62 gentoo-user@g.o mailing list